The present invention is drawn to a method and apparatus for making snow and more particularly a method and apparatus for making snow which is fully automatic.
In the snow-making art, it is well known to mix compressed air and pressurized water in a cold ambient atmosphere to produce a stream of snow particles. Typical snow-making apparatus comprise a plurality of snow-making nozzles which are fed compressed air and pressurized water through separate lines. The flow of compressed air and pressurized water to the nozzles of the snow-making apparatus are provided by conventional air compressors and water pump equipment. The compressors and pump equipment are generally located down the mountain far from the snow-making apparatus. The compressed air and pressurized water are fed to the snow-making apparatus via pipelines located beneath the surface of the earth. The pipelines are provided over the length thereof with branch conduits having coupling means for connecting hoses thereto. The hoses in turn are selectively connected by couplings to the snow-making apparatus for feeding compressed air and pressurized water to the snow-making nozzles. The branch conduits are provided with manually actuated stop valves for selectively controlling the flow of water and compressed air to the branch conduits and correspondingly the snow-making apparatus. A typical snow-making installation is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,676,471.
Heretofore, known snow-making installations as set forth above have suffered from a number of disadvantages. These disadvantages generally result from the fact that known systems require personal observation of climatic conditions on the slopes and the manual positioning and adjustment of the snow-making apparatus at optimum locations along the slopes. For example, in order to successfully produce snow it is necessary that the temperature be below freezing and preferably below 28.degree. F. The temperature range on a mountain slope can vary significantly from trail to trail and thus require personal monitoring of the various locations. Once the suitable slopes and trails are located personnel must move the snow-making equipment including the snow guns and hoses to the appropriate locations on the slopes. The equipment must then be attached and the stop valves for feeding air and water to the equipment must be set. The locations must then be continually monitored for climatic changes which would result in the formation of ice, water, etc. As can be seen from the foregoing, installations heretofore known require numerous personnel to effectively monitor the slopes and operate the snow-making equipment all of which greatly adds to the operating costs of ski area operators.
Accordingly, it is a principle object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for effectively making snow which is substantially fully automatic.
It is a particular object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for effectively making snow wherein the flow of compressed air and water to the snow-making apparatus is automatically controlled.
Further objects and advantages of the present invention will appear hereinbelow.